


giggle fit.

by orphan_account



Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Hallucinations, Hospitals, Made-Up Diseases, Mangos, Self-Isolation, Sick Character, Sickfic, poor matt, unreality
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-30
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2020-03-29 20:12:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19027096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: matt's got a case of the giggles.





	giggle fit.

When it first started off, Matt hadn't thought too much about it. It had been late at night, after all, maybe he had just been in a silly mood. When it got to the point where every time he thought about the smallest little insignificant thing, he would burst into laughter, that was where it became concerning.

He knew humor in 2019 was vastly different to that of, for example, 2013, and made him laugh much easier from just how outlandishly nonsensical it was, but normally he wouldn't almost pass out laughing just thinking of something Ryan said offhandedly a day later.

It became terrifying. He laughed longer, laughed harder, at literally nothing. He would be doing something completely serious and then just burst into hysterics. He didn't know what the fuck was wrong with him. Ryan was getting concerned, but Matt didn't want to sound crazy- he pretty much already looked the part. And Ryan wouldn't want to be friends with someone who was literally insane. So, in his panic, Matt stopped talking to him.

He didn't even let it happen naturally- he just.. stopped. Stopped replying to his texts, stopped answering his calls, stopped opening the door. He cut him off completely, but he still. Kept. Laughing. It would creep up on him, and in his dark LA apartment with the blinds and curtains drawn, he would burst into giggles. He would cry every single time, sobbing and laughing in one breath. Tears of mirth and fear would stream down his gaunt, pale face, shoulders trembling, wondering what was happening to him. Begging himself, silently, pleading for whatever this was to just go away. He couldn't sleep anymore. He would lay down and start cackling for the rest of the night- the deep purple bags under his eyes were definitely getting deeper.

Once the third week of.. this, began, he started feeling feverish.

Every time he laughed, his body would heat up, chills and warmth rolling down his spine in one foul swoop. It never went away. It never got better. He would push open the windows as far as they would go to try and cool himself down, catch any resemblance of a breeze, but it didn't work. It never did.

His phone had been blowing up with notifications since he stopped talking to Ryan. He didn't check it anymore. He didn't even put it on silent, afraid that somehow, it would make him laugh even more. He just wanted to stop laughing. He just wanted to stop.

Sometimes he would check it. The times he berated himself for.

20 missed calls from Ryan. 12 from Arin. 13 from Dan. 4 from Chris. 2 from Ding Dong. 6 from Julian. 21 from Tucker. He laughed. Every time, he laughed.

During the fourth week, he stopped crying. He had nothing left in him. No fight. He started dry heaving mid-giggle. The thought of laughing voluntarily made him feel sick to his stomach. He would throw up whatever was left in his body, miraculously, and laugh about it.

Ryan stopped coming and knocking on the door. He wished he hadn't. He missed Ryan. He missed him so much. It made him laugh.

On the fifth week, Ryan came back. He told him to stand away from the door. Matt giggled to himself. Ryan knocked the door down. Well, not really. More like, he rammed into it hard enough to not only injure himself, but also swing it wide open. It made Matt laugh.

"Jesus Christ," Ryan breathed, looking him up and down. "You look like a corpse, Matt."

He couldn't do anything but laugh in response. He wanted to reply. Wanted to tell Ryan how much he missed him, that he was sorry, please help him, he can't stop laughing, he's sick and he doesn't know how to get rid of it and it's killing him, it's destroying him from the inside out, please help him please help me please please Ryan please-

He couldn't get it out. He would try, and then he would laugh. Ryan was looking at him like he was a wild, unhinged animal. Ryan didn't trust him. Matt didn't trust himself, either.

Something looked like it clicked in Ryan's head. He stopped looking at him like that. Matt didn't know what he was going to do.

"You can't help it, can you?" Ryan asked, testing the waters. Matt could barely shake his head. He was in hysterics- he had started sobbing again. He tried to stutter out a reply- no dice. Ryan began getting closer. Matt didn't know why, but he was afraid. Terrified. Ryan was stronger. Ryan could kill him at any second. Ryan could snap his neck, put him out of his misery. The opportunities made him shake more than he already was, made his heart beat faster than it seemed like it could. The worst part was, Matt wanted him to do it.

It was taking all the fight he had left in him, but he forced himself to just giggle quietly. Ryan was right in front of him now, looking at him with this expression he couldn't quite understand. Ryan raised his arms. Matt flinched. "I'm not gonna hurt you, buddy," Ryan said, using that specific tone of voice people always used. It made Matt feel.. something. It made him feel like he was.. like everything was going to be okay. He hadn't felt like that in a long time.

Ryan hugged him.

Matt sobbed.

He wasn't laughing anymore.

There was still an urge, bubbling up in his chest, but he wasn't laughing. He was still so, so terrified. Ryan told him it was all going to be okay, they were going to help him. Matt gripped onto him tight.

He was gripping onto empty space.

Matt opened his eyes.

Ryan wasn't there.

The door was still firmly shut. The apartment was empty. There was no soft reassurances from Ryan, holding onto him and making him feel like he was okay. He was alone, and he had been for a long time.

He kept crying. Until he realized, there was never going to be anybody coming unless he reached out. There was never going to be someone to come and kick the door open, tell him he was alright, that there was some way to fix him, unless he told somebody. Unless he asked for it.

Shakily, he reached for his phone.

He opened up Twitter. Better to get the word out widespread than just text all of his friends one at a time.

The words looked nonsensical to him, and he had started laughing again because of that, which made it harder to type. What he had to work with looked something like,

"plebagss e gkelp mem"

They could probably figure it out. The fans are smart.

He hit send.

Immediately, the storm began. Thousands of concerned fans asking if he was alright, where he had been, pinging the people he knew to alert them. In a way, it was kind of heartwarming to realize that so many people still cared. Especially about a person they had never met, only watched on a website. Within minutes, he got a text from Ryan.

**ryan :)** what the FUCK matt  
 **ryan :)** are you okay??? where are you?  
 **ryan :)** what's going on?????  
 **You** ims s ory r  
 **ryan :)** please just tell me what the fuck is happening  
 **You** id d dfnt know  
 **You** i ac ch nts top lsfhiung  
 **ryan :)** matt you're really fucking scaring me  
 **You** osm ryr i fa cnht hel p it  
 **ryan :)** are you at your apartment?????  
 **You** yr s  
 **You** plasdde h lep  
 **ryan :)** i'm coming over  
 **ryan :)** stay there  
 **You** oksy

He got other texts, of course. Arin asking him what was going on, Dan trying to make sure he was okay, etc. His friends still cared. For a second, he was hopeful.

A few minutes passed. There was a knock on the door.

Matt remembered what happened.

"Matt? You in there?" Ryan asked, voice muffled through the wood. He didn't know if he could trust Ryan. He had come over once before, and turned out to not be real. Matt didn't know what was a trick and what wasn't. Maybe the real Ryan already killed him. Maybe this was a dream. "Can you open the door?"

Matt tried to get out the words. He couldn't. He had been barely able to stand a few hours prior, his legs shaking like a newborn calf's and threatening to buckle at any second. He tried again. All that came out was another bark of laughter. He could practically hear Ryan flinch. "Jesus.." came the terrified mutter. Matt shrank into himself. He was useless.

"Is the door locked?" Ryan asked again. Matt didn't know. He tried to get up- the world spun dangerously, and he almost cracked his skull on the carpet, but he was standing at least. Walking was a different kind of problem all together. He managed, thin legs trembling but just about managing to support him as he made his way over. The door was, indeed, locked. He twisted it around until he heard it click. He stepped away, and Ryan slowly opened the door.

"Oh my God," Ryan breathed, voice full of relief, immediately going in for a hug. It wasn't at all like what he had hallucinated earlier- warm, grounding, soft. It was like nothing had ever happened. Matt slowly hugged back. He sobbed again. "I was so fucking scared." Ryan said, and Matt managed to stutter out an apology. "Hey, no, don't be sorry, calm down." The older's words filled him with a feeling like no other- hope, reassurance. It felt like it shone in his chest like a sunbeam, a deep breath of fresh air. Matt didn't want to let go. He didn't want this to be a dream again. He wanted it to be real, he wanted Ryan to help him, he wanted to go back to what life was before- video games and podcasts with his friends.

Slowly, Ryan pulled his head away, just enough to get a good look at him. "Are you okay?" he asked, and Matt shook his head. "What happened?" Ryan tried to ask again. Matt tried to talk, tried to explain it, and just about managed- voice hoarse and crackly from disuse. "I c.. I can't.. co-ouldn't.." The words had seemed to slip from his mind, and he grew frustrated with himself as he tried to express what was going on.

"Don't force yourself, calm down," Ryan hushed him immediately, still hugging him close. "If you can't talk about it, then it's okay." Matt nodded, instead burying his head in Ryan's shirt. With every trembling breath, he felt just a bit better, just a bit happier. Truly. Not because of whatever stupid thing made him like this in the first place, but genuine happiness.

They stayed like that for a while, until Matt realized just how exhausted he was. He could barely keep his eyes open any longer. Without any warning, his body just kind of.. slumped into Ryan, barely keeping his grip on his shirt. Ryan was saying something to him, but everything was getting a little dark, so it must be night, right? And he's not laughing anymore, so maybe he can sleep it off.. besides, Ryan is warm.. and comfortable.. and...

 

He woke up in a bed he didn't recognize.

The sun was bright, far brighter than he remembered, and he instinctively shut his eyes again. He was still so tired. He just wanted to go back to sleep. Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be in the cards for him.

"Hey," he heard a soft voice, and upon opening his eyes, he realized Ryan was sitting in a chair next to him. "How're you feeling?"

His voice came out deep, and gravelly, but he could at least talk. "Fine," Matt replied, entire mind and body aching for more rest. "Still tired." In the background, he could hear beeps. Where the fuck was he?

"Then you should probably get more sleep, Matt Skellington," Ryan replied, cracking a smile. Matt huffed out a laugh. He didn't want to, but he supposed it was good manners. He was terrified it would come back, but for whatever blessed reason, it didn't. "Seriously, go back to sleep."

He managed to hum a quiet 'alright', letting his eyes slip shut again.

 

The next time he woke up, it seemed like he was catching the tail-end of a conversation.

"..on't know how that's... ..ible, seeing as the disease was pre.. ...sly thought inc.. ..rable.. must be an irr.. ..gularity... we'd like to k.. ...overnight if that's okay..."  
Wait a fucking minute. Disease?

Forcing his eyes to open a little more, he realized the room and bed were both white. And there were doctors. And also his mom.

He's in the hospital.

Closing his eyes almost immediately to avoid being detected, he forced himself to relax. He wanted to listen in on the conversation.

"Seeing as he's not awake right now, it'd probably be best for you and your family to go and get some rest. We'll keep you updated." The doctor and his mom exchanged formalities, before he heard retreating footsteps. Opening his eyes a crack revealed both of them were gone.

Slowly, he managed to push himself upright into a more comfortable position, stretching his arms and legs out. He was still tired, but at least whatever disease he had gotten seemed to have gone away.

Jesus Christ, he was bored. Did they have his phone anywhere?

As if on cue, he heard the sound of flip-flops against tile, and knew only one person who would come into the hospital wearing fucking flip-flops. He waited a few seconds, before the door opened and Ryan walked in.

"Hey," Ryan said, smiling at him. That damn smile. It always made him feel better. He hummed a greeting in reply, sleep still clinging to him like his ex-wife in bed. "Still feeling better?"

"Yeah," Matt answered, voice still a little hoarse. "Fuckin' bored, but yeah." Ryan fumbled around with his pockets for a moment, before whipping something black and rectangular out. "Good thing I brought this, then."

"Holy shit, thank you," Matt grinned, pushing himself a little more upright to take his phone from Ryan. Opening it revealed a number of missed calls, texts, and Tweets, all of which he ignored in favor of making one of his own.

'mangos are pretty cool'

Hm. That could use some elaboration.

'they're like. summery and shit. love em'  
'especially with passionfruit and stuff'  
'i'm really fucking thirsty'

Yeah, that looks good. Throw that one out to the public, they'll love it.

Ryan was checking his phone, now, and immediately burst into giggles. Matt smiled a little wider. Things were looking up, for sure.


End file.
